Increased ease of use, small problems

Computer Store News: Windows 8 was released last year as a controversial operating system. Its emphasis on touch operations and the drastic adjustment of the interface have led to criticism from PC users. Yesterday, Microsoft officially released the first major upgrade of Windows 8 — — Windows 8.1. In this upgrade, Microsoft has improved many aspects of the system based on user feedback, and also added a lot of new features.

With the official release of 8.1, the technology website The Verge also brought a review article for this system:

UI changes

After upgrading to Windows 8.1, you won't see much difference from Windows 8. The startup is still very fast, and the dynamic tile is still popped up after login. However, as the use goes deeper, those subtle upgrades will become more apparent.

The first time users will see a demo at setup time, and then get some tips when navigating through the app and the system, which is very useful for new users. . In addition, a special “Help+Tips” application has been added to the system to provide more help to users who are confused about the new interface.

On the new start screen, Microsoft borrowed from the WP8 design and added more dynamic tile sizes. The weather tile now displays 3 cities and 3 days of forecasts at the same time, and the calendar shows all the events of the day. The Windows Store now also includes animation effects that provide instant app recommendations. While most start-up screen upgrades focus on new Windows 8-style applications, Microsoft now allows traditional desktop applications to use color tiles instead of just application icons, which should make everyone's start screen look more beautiful. some.

Swipe up on the start screen to open the "All apps" view, which contains all the apps installed on your device and can be filtered by criteria. You can also set it to enter the start screen. The default view. These changes seem to be primarily designed for desktop users, and in the desktop mode settings, you can also choose to boot directly to the desktop instead of the start screen.

Start button and snap view

After running Windows 8.1 for the first time, you will see the start button come back. Its role now becomes the channel for switching between the desktop and the start screen, and under the start screen, you only appear when you mouse over the bottom left corner of the screen. For many people, this start button will serve as a hint for how to navigate Windows, much more intuitive than the strange vacancies in Windows 8. But it's just a button: Microsoft won't bring the traditional Windows Start menu back.

Windows 8.1 also allows users to do more customization. The new built-in background image will produce a moving animation when you slide, and you can also choose the color theme —— compared to Windows 8, it all looks a lot more flexible. But in personalization, the most important thing is to set the wallpaper for the same desktop mode and start screen. Although it sounds simple, it is actually an effective way to connect two interfaces that are not tuned.

And the author's favorite changes —— at least visually —— is the ability to organize Windows 8 applications in a close view. By default, if you click on a link from an app, the system will open a new app on the side of the screen with a 50/50 view ratio. For example, click on a web link in the email, IE It will pop up and be arranged in parallel with the mail application. If you open an image from an email or elsewhere, the image application that opens will get a little more space. Any application can have different windows or be expanded across multiple displays. If you've already placed multiple apps on the screen, a floating app tile will pop up when you open a new app, allowing you to choose a location to snap to.

At the same time, users can now rely on more apps on the screen. Although the small tablet can only open a 50/50 view ratio, if it is a 27-inch display, the number of applications that can be attached at the same time can reach up to four. You can even use Miracast-compatible displays to snap and drag apps across screens. In this mode, the practicality of Windows 8 applications has been greatly improved, especially when mixed with traditional desktop applications.

Search

The biggest change in Windows 8.1 is probably search, and it has become more comprehensive from the height of Windows 8. If you search for "stores" in the system, there are Bing search results in addition to the application. Search is now a separate application for collecting documents and data stored locally or in SkyDrive, system settings, and even web results —— all in a single interface.

When searching for people or places, Bing’s smart search capabilities are impressive. For example, if you search Rihanna, the system will present you with a full-screen interface containing the person's pictures, videos, and songs. This approach is practical and stylish, and Bing can also get data from the application. If you want to play a singer's music, the system will open Xbox Music directly.

News is now also available in search, as well as key information from Wikipedia. Images can be expanded and viewed separately, and you can even filter by color to find the one you need. Speaking of images, if you search for a location, the new search experience will even find the image you took there —— if any, —— and the web search results. While searching in apps is a bit more complicated now, most built-in apps have opted to include a virtual search bar to make the transition easier. Obviously, Microsoft put a lot of thought and effort into the new search interface, and it worked.

SkyDrive Sync and IE11

Microsoft has linked visual changes and functionality to a new set of built-in applications, and SkyDrive’s central location is more It is obvious. The synchronization engine was put into the system, and Microsoft also brought some intelligent enhancements to file synchronization.

SkyDrive does not currently download all stored content to a PC, but only the icons and information needed to identify the file. The download will not open until you open the file. Of course, you can also use the settings to download files and folders, or the entire SkyDrive storage for offline use.

SkyDrive stores all your settings, files and apps. If you need to use a different Windows 8.1 PC, you only need to log in to your own Microsoft account, all the content will be synchronized to the new PC, just like using your own PC — — this will undoubtedly bring great Convenience. As with other content in Windows 8.1, synchronization seems to be a reasonable upgrade, but it is also one of the most important upgrades in Windows 8.1.

Microsoft has also used its own cloud synchronization technology to enhance the IE11 browser. IE now supports unlimited tags and transfers them to the bottom of the screen for easy access to small form factors. At the same time, IE11 has become faster and more intuitive, and you can now sync tags, favorites and history across devices. In the future Windows Phone upgrade, this capability will also be extended to mobile phones.

Microsoft also added WebGL support for IE11, enabling developers to create larger web games. The reading view also makes web browsing more convenient, and it can also store web pages for later reading. The ability of IE11 to detect phone numbers also allows users to quickly dial from web pages using applications such as Skype. Many of these changes are very suitable for touch-friendly IE11, but Microsoft seems to have missed the desktop version of IE. At the same time, competitors like Google continue to push, expand, and even the entire system into their browsers.

Applications and App Stores

Windows 8's built-in apps feel like they're working hard and lack functionality. But in Windows 8.1, all of these applications have been improved. Every application has been visually changed, and some have even added Windows Phone-style app bars to enhance navigation. The email app has been completely redesigned, and both mouse and keyboard controls have been improved. You can drag and drop information into folders and easily select multiple messages in your inbox, making overall filtering and management easier. The performance of the app has also been greatly improved, and the window for writing emails will appear on your right hand side instead of occupying the entire screen.

Outlook.com users are naturally able to get the best experience —— Microsoft has added separate filters for favorites, tagged messages, and news and social email. The mail app also includes a new window option that allows users to place information side by side. There's also a new calendar app that brings a redesigned “new content” view, an upgrade to the contacts app, and some keyboard enhancements to quickly enter numbers. Compared to Windows 8, the experience of the new version of the mail application is very much ahead.

Microsoft also used Skype to make major changes to the communication features in Windows 8.1. The information application with limited functionality was cancelled and became a built-in version of Skype. Although it's still a standalone app that works the same way as Windows 8, Microsoft has extended Skype's capabilities to lock screens: you can now accept calls without unlocking your PC. Skype's information experience is still in great need of improvement, but it has been able to work across contacts and email applications, you can click on a friend's name to call them.

Microsoft also brings functional upgrades to the built-in image app, including the ability to cut, rotate, and edit. Unfortunately, the integration of Flickr and Facebook photos has been cancelled due to the addition of separate apps, but SkyDrive support is still available. The new Photo Loop feature also allows the camera app to take photos immediately after loading, which is a great feature if supported by hardware.

The new Windows App Store combines these together. It's a window for new apps and even new versions of Windows, and it's now able to automatically upgrade everything in the background. The new design of the app store makes finding apps easier, but its application choices are still lacking: there are too many fake Facebook, YouTube and other unofficial apps, and there are too few third-party choices. In many ways, this is very similar to the situation of Windows Phone. But at least Facebook has now launched its own official app and is starting to take an interest in the platform. This is a very critical part of the success of Windows 8/RT on the tablet. Microsoft also needs developers to build a comprehensive and healthy app store.

Summary

Windows 8 brings a development around the touch screen, but Microsoft alone is not enough to promote the concept of Windows Tablet. This mobile-focused system is not what users want, nor does it meet the vendor's design and planning for hybrid PC/tablets. Microsoft admitted through Windows 8.1 that they still have a lot to do. However, this upgrade is also the most successful result of Microsoft's attempt to create a platform that is more practical for PCs and tablets. The return of the start button indicates that Microsoft is aware that it is a bit too far away in the Windows 8 program, but this small change makes the system more familiar to users.

In Windows 8.1, we saw that Microsoft has done a lot in the past year, even though much of it should have arrived with Windows 8. Smart SkyDrive integration and beautiful and useful built-in search capabilities are examples of how Microsoft can quickly improve the usability of Windows 8. At the same time, Windows 8.1 also demonstrates Microsoft's determination and efforts to unify its products.

Of course, there are still many to be done. While Microsoft is trying to blur the boundaries between desktop and Metro, newer applications still fail to provide the same flexibility and performance as desktop applications. A true "no compromise" operating system is clearly the ultimate goal, but Windows 8 is still making progress. I hope that in future upgrades, we can run Windows 8 applications in window mode and cross the boundaries between desktop and Metro. The flexibility of desktop mode remains the most attractive use of Windows 8.1, which is not enough. Windows 8 applications need to keep moving forward.

Windows 8 users will certainly welcome the changes brought by 8.1, these changes should also clear some of the doubts. If Microsoft can keep this pace and further deepen the integration of products and services in the future, we should expect a lot.